Category Archives for Crime

We see a week or so ago Roel criticizing the local Rate Payers and Residents Association for trying to get the government off its complaisant lazy ass and for it properly look into the dodgy, constantly changing so called business plan the city has for Kings Sq.

I wonder whats worse the rate payers asking the questions, or the city making a risky business decision and leaving the city 10’s of millions of dollars in Debt with a depleted revenue based portfolio as our current Mayor wants to sell off anything, his &^%$s haven’t leased out.

Anyway on the issue of Damaging Brand Freo, apart from council seemingly attempting to bankrupt the city, the Mayors latest debacle, his canceling of the Australian Day fireworks.

Whats Not Happening Australia Day 2017 with our present Freo council and mayor

While I’m not overly enthused with fireworks per-say , and they aren’t necessary to celebrate Australia Day. Its hardly surprising to see the community reaction. Many do take the chance to celebrate Australia Day its a great way for family’s to do an outdoor activity and when you go to the local parks to watch, you see what a great community we have in Freo, everyone coming together to celebrate our national day, in a happy, peaceful,respectful atmosphere.

Its great you don’t need to go to Fremantle centre and expose your young family to the anti-social types, Fremantle centre has become a magnet for, drunk’s druggies, the vandalism, the drug dealers, the violence and foul language which has just gotten out of control in the CBD, over the last decade or so.

So back to the question who is really damaging “BRAND FREMANTLE”, concerned community members, or a council, which has overseen;

The crash of retail

The exodus of jobs

The decline of business in general

The increase in Alcohol based events, its the one way our council drives people to the city, killing off its once family friendly reputation. Even simple events like meet the candidates, needs an open bar, I see co-run by the network, another council directed community group.

The decline of basic maintenance

The loss of Parking, a key ingredient to the success of any Australian retail/business precinct

The encouragement of graffiti vandalism by the COF/Mayor

Increase in anti-social behaviour

Increase in crime

Fremantle known as a top 10 worse suburbs for assaults in WA, nothing unusual to see this for freo, https://www.crimestopperswa.com.au/open-cases/assault-south-terrace-fremantle/

Etc.

Now we see worldwide, the laughing stock the mayor has made of Fremantle, with his attack on an Australian Day; a favoured celebration, the fireworks night; as he’s concerned its upsetting a small part of our community, but happily the mayor is willing to piss-off the majority to achieve nothing.

“The mayor of Fremantle has expressed his surprise that a decision to cancel the city’s Australia Day celebrations has become a nationwide debate.

Brad Pettitt said while plenty of people contacting him after yesterday’s decision were unhappy, he believed the majority of Fremantle residents backed the move.”

What a pile of crap the mayor believing the community would want this. Just showing how completely out of touch with reality he is. And Brad its not nationwide its gone international. Blogs are posting worldwide even with video of how bad this idea is.

Some make Australia great

some drag it downsome just celebrate how great it is

In his last election only approx 18%, of the community voted for him , so he’s entitled to say he speak for that minority group, he is clueless arrogant to what the majority want.
Whats next, canceling Christmas, Easter or blessing of the fleet, where will he’s attacks stop on Australian celebration days, in his need to appease a few minority at the expense of the broader community. Looking more and more like a need to have his face in the paper, is he that insecure?

These issues are political motivated by national and state politics, this well could be the thin edge of the wedge; as party politics has infested our local council like a cancer.

Council is about the amenity of the residents and ratepayers, not there for a select few to drive their personal party political agendas which have failed on a state and national level. This is why local councils like freo support groups, like 350, One planet, as they can not penetrate politics the way they like, at a larger level, especially where compulsory voting is in place, so they attack areas, like councils, where the general community takes little interest until it directly effects them, then being to late to stop. When continually ignored by the council its not surprising that they lose interest in participation.

Councils that are dominated by groups like this, rely on the complacency of the wider public to sneak their agendas in.

Great way to kill of tourism, people come to Australia to see Australia, not a washed out versions of its former self, as our council attempts to make whats great bland and uninteresting, in case it offends someone.

Apart from the mayor perhaps going his usual i chat to whom i knows agrees with me; I see no evidence on any community engagement from the council, with its rate payers and residents on this issue, clearly the Mayor Brad Pettitt, got it wrong again, as he does so often.

The City of Fremantle is committed to best practice community engagement and engages on a diverse range of issues and projects.

Community engagement is a way of acknowledging the skills, knowledge and passion contained within the citizens and stakeholders of the City and seeks to combine these with the skills, knowledge and passion of staff and elected members.”

Premier is quoted as it smells like WA Inc., when further questioned, doesn’t deny but give a “no comment”
That tells story’s by its self.
I wonder if they would risk moving a government department to a place where there is such controversy and community concerns.

They have a government election around the corner supporting a council led project that has potential blow MILLIONS of $$$$$$$$ of rate payers, money??

Why does the Mayor push so hard for the Sirona deal to go through surely if they come to Freo anywhere is a bonus???

What does the Fremantles Mayor Brad Pettitt have to gain driving this one deal, that risks so much of Fremantles financial future??
Is it just ego?
We have seen a past mayor call it lunacy.
A sitting Premier compare it with WA Inc.
Two financial specialists working in in big business question the basic business financial soundness of the citys Business Plan.
# community groups that have run multiple community events to inform the residents and rate Payers.
Questions asked in Parliament about it.
Hidden documents by council
Secret meetings
Public attacks on a resident for raising questions on the Business plan.
A minister for local government refusing to investigate, whats he afraid he will find?
A new independent Councillor just entering the council voted against, Brads plan
All this and the Brad train just blunders on clearly he could not care less about about public concerns the very people they was swore to represent.

When questions are raised on the Mayors blog it been claimed edits or deletes them, bloggers have to post to other sites, only then it seems the Mayor will post the questions, while never answering whats asked but spinning to another angle. I have had similar issues in the past myself, others now coming out with the same claims. Its why i stopped reading it, just another promo blog.

If we look back a few years and refer to media reports, the city of Fremantle and its Mayor Brad Pettitt recognized or at least talk about the need for retail environment to improve in Fremantle, as we see in the Wests story below.

“Fremantle needs to renew itself as an economic centre by growing its population, bringing in more office workers and attracting a high-profile department store such as David Jones in order to boost its stagnating retail sector, according to the city’s mayor. “

Sadly the Mayor missed the other part needed, the one the council could have the most influence on the anti-social, issues, Graffiti problems, maintenance of the city control assets, the city has a bad parking image, so what has councils done, sell off more parking, plus removed more on street parking. Not to mention approving more office, business and residential projects all lacking in parking infrastuure, while whining about the poor retail situation Fremantle is in. Go figure they are not helping the situation.

So while other centres and expanding and are aggressively increasing their parking assets, freo’s regressing and selling off the parking it does control. Freo council is just anti-car, which will lead to anti growth.

“The City of Fremantle says a plan to double the size of Garden City Shopping Centre flouts the guidelines and will siphon more retail from the port city and undermine its efforts to establish a key economic centre. “

So while other centres are going, Fremantle is reaching for Kleenex to cry about others doing their jobs while they continue on the blind campaign running Freo’s opportunities further into the ground.

“Garden City shopping centre at Booragoon will become the retail heart of a restaurant, entertainment, commercial and higher-density residential precinct under plans endorsed by the WA Planning Commission.

An expansion to make the shopping centre WA’s biggest is just one plank in a broader city centre overhaul that includes the development of a new high street and piazza, a revamped cinema complex and the introduction of small bars and restaurants intended to draw people to the area outside shopping hours.”

So now it will not be long before new bars and restaurant takes over from Freo as a night time entertainment district. As long as they (Melville) controls anti-socials issues, benefits like massive free parking and the ability to shop, go for dinner and park once, is a win win for Booragoon and lose lose, sadly for Fremantle.

When Councillors have attitudes like we see from Andrew S comments on Roels Freo View, it doesn’t bode well for Freo’s future.

A cut and paste of part of Andrews comment, the link above at the top of the page will link anyone interested in reading the full list of comments, plus Roel’s orginal post. Its important to read the full context of ones comments not just trust my POV.

“The third issue is that regional boxes like Garden City transfer the cost of parking into the rents and thats equitable because all the people parking there are visiting the one centre. There is really no other reason to be parking there because there is nothing else to do but to go in to that centre – yawn!. In essence, you pay for parking at Booragoon through the shop till rather than in the car park. In a diverse and complex city centre, that opportunity really doesn’t exist even through the rate system. Paid parking is adopted as a more direct and equitable user-pays system.”

A simple example of the inaccuracy of such statements is going to a place like the coffee club in freo or Garden city where you would see the price is the same at both locations, no extra charge at Booragoon because parking is free. No to mention all the other added benefits of booragoon

Better ambiance with much less anti-social issues

Close to the Freeways, Canning Hwy, leach Hwy, Roe Hwy, easy enter and exit in your drive in and out

Bus Terminal hub

Air-condition shopping experience from top to bottom,

No crossing streets, or dodging cyclists and skaters, etc, safely navigating with the kids with less to worry about

No druggies and drunks laying in the centre of the shopping trip.

No parking tickets for being back to your car, when your a minute late from your max parking time of 30mins

No caught in the heat or rain

ETc, etc.

Sadly Freo over the last decade has only gone down hill, both state and federal governments have done little for Freo over the same time. Not much interest from our local members either who seem more interested in events outside our city than what is happening too it. When the state has tried to give needed infrastructure its met with councils protesting, spending thousands of dollars on meaningless reports, to object to simple needed infrastructure like roads to ease congestion in and around the city. More interested in driving political party rhetoric than amenity of its residents.

Hence Fremantle is where it is and sadly little sign that recover is coming as other centres surge ahead and fremantle is moving backwards.

My thoughts on Roel post on his blog, my family live in this area so i think i have quite a good understanding of what locals think, i don’t know anyone who owns there own home in the area that wants high density or large apartment blocks. the area has been plagued with anti-social issues, drug dealing and petty crime and vandalism. History from the world tells us that the higher the density the worse the problem. We have a council that drives this high density but as best i know most of them live in houses with yards, garages, drive ways etc, not the they preach how everyone should live.

Roel the community in Blinco St are galready up in-arms about development just across the road as their homes/houses where getting two story in front of them. Not to mention the street already has huge parking issues. So how you think that 8 stories is OK I have no idea.

The area has a mountain of homes West housing just up the street, just over in Beaconsfield is a whole lot more, known as the Beacy Broncs, also well known for massive police raids and a continually hot bed of trouble, petty crime home invasions, vandalism graffiti and intimation to those who call the authorities to complain. Across the road on the northern side of High St is a heap more.

Just up the Hill from this area going East, they have over a couple of years homes demolished, Homes West houses, which were also well known for drug dealing hot spots and domestic violence.

I was standing alongside Steve Grant when he took the photo at this community group meeting, 6 or 7 mins walk from the place your article is referring too. Again lots of promises at the this meeting about actions the council was going to take, (possibly as it was just before an election) now the election has past, action seems pretty much nothing on the issue.

Fremantle already has a higher than average % of homes west than the average suburb and needs no more. Just 2 weeks ago we see cars torched at the cold store area as drug dealing issues come to the front in homes west houses again.

A CAR that was set alight in an alleged arson attack belongs to a man who was last week involved in a fracas with neighbours at Fremantle’s Cold Stores housing complex(“Residents besieged,” Herald, February 13, 2016).

A 43-year-old fellow tenant of the WA Housing complex between Queen Victoria and Beach Streets has been charged with criminal damage by fire”

We shouldn’t even need to mention the traffic issues in the area as both High St and Stevens St have traffic issue leaving the valley on Steven St at both ends is already dangerous with dumb design on Hampton Rd and the council ignoring a decade of complaints about the other end on Carrington where you have to blindly out onto a major rd.

South St has its own set of problems and the High St intersection with Stirling Hwy is another traffic black spot, well known for accidents and is full of trucks from the port as it’s the major route out.

The local primary school is full, past capacity with transportable units on the school oval. The Kim Beazley site is yet to have single resident move in, which is set to add 100’s more on just one block, in the middle of the mess I have just mentioned

And you think adding thousands on more people into a suburb area in high rises to create future slums is a good idea?

You may not have noticed but people who spend millions on penthouses don’t like the idea of a possible drug dealer or meth lab on the ground floor under their penthouse, having to rely on the roll of the dice you get from homes west.

High density in this area would be a disastrous outcome for what was another leafy green suburb, rapidly being destroyed by a political motivated councils density drive which is destroying our tree canopy and massively increasing our urban heat sink

Residents report feeling better and having fewer health problems when there are more trees on their street. Photograph: Jon Hrusa/EPA

than more concrete boxes like we see on Amherst St as in your pics.

Roel Loopers Freoview

Leaving less and less space for kids to play while driving more traffic in poorly designed and maintained road network

The council could not f-/: up more if they tried.

I have been to places our Mayor Brad Pettitt wants to mimic like Malmo, I have friends from there and outlaying districts all have seen their amenity deteriorating, as Malmö has become a centre for crime, violence, drug dealing and organized crime.

Not exactly what I would like to see copied into Freo we have enough shit as it is.

Here’s another case with the same factors building up so whats our council doing to stamp out this sort of behaviour in our city. We have on the cnr, of High St and Stirling Hwy another squatters setup what are the council the police and the owners of the building doing about this, its unacceptable for this to continue.